jsn55

You got it right! Medallion is a totally needless disaster. Princess does not care. Too bad, they'll lose market share ... who wants to pay good money to be tortured for weeks and months? Who wants to diddle with a screwed-up app when there's no rational reason to use it, it's just 'required'. Royal Princess can't even set up a buffet properly. Took our first and last Princess cruise last December; I can't believe anyone would ever cruise with them more than once.

Can I like this twice?

I agree with you about the 'personal services'; I usually avoid it all, but over Christmas on Royal Princess I read about a 'complimentary hair consultation' and thought I'd stop by, my hair seems to be getting 'wiry' and ugly lately. I suspect it's the grey under the color/highlights. My hairdresser does a great job, but her English is not so good, so discussions like this don't happen. First, the front desk knew nothing about this offer. Finally I was shunted to the 'top stylist' and told her my concerns and need for advice. She said "You need a keratin treatment, it's $90." I just stared at her, she remained silent. I thanked her and left. It's too bad they're such money-grubbing places, I'll certainly never go back for anything at all..

Really enjoying these posts!!

We're on the Epic in October. It was booked without reading reviews, so I really laughed at the descriptions here. My take is that there's no 'bad cruise or ship' so I know we'll have a good time because we keep our expectations low. The bathroom layout seems perfect for two people sharing a cabin. If you know each other well enough to be in the same cabin, why would seeing your roomie's 'silhouette' in the shower be a problem? People are indeed weird. I am looking forward to reading this thread ... so much information can be gained by reading others' experiences.

Unless it's specifically tailored to someone, anything but cash is a waste of money and effort. As an example, I've never been impressed by 'generic gifts'. I find that rather arrogant and annoying. Yesterday, via FedX, I received a super-ugly 'throw' from American Express in honor of being a customer for 50 years. Beautifully wrapped, the thing's 'pure cotton' from Portugal, the whole package probably cost $150 and I'll just give it to Goodwill. I would have appreciated 50K points much more. I would consider that a thoughtful gift. But the point of this thread is to share what people like to give with their cash tips on a cruise. Beyond me why certain people feel they have to judge what others think or do. There's no right or wrong choice, it's just interesting to read ... and isn't that what a forum like this is for?

I can't imagine that this kind of a neck pillow would give any comfort at all.

The only 'undrinkable' wine is one you don't want to drink.

Far as I know, 'the rules' state that a corkage fee is charged if you want to drink the wine outside your cabin. For consumption in your cabin, there's no charge. But how much effort hauling around wine are you willing to expend to save a few bucks?

The mindless have learned that being the loudest will often get them what they want. Since they are unable to think, they feel entitled to monopolize anyone 'in charge' ... they don't consider other participants. Never more true than on an organized tour. And shopping, of course, is number one on their list ... because it's truly mindless.

I think a quality cruiseship will have enough deck chairs for all the pax, thereby avoiding the whole topic entirely and causing no insults or meanness.

Yes, watching the sailaway from your balcony, NOT the 'sailaway party' on the ship. With a glass of champagne. I strive to book an aft-facing balcony when we cruise if the ship has them. Got one just randomly several years ago and I'm hooked.

Either one will be fine, do your research and pick what suits you. The important thing is to spend a couple of days in Quebec City, the place is quite wonderful.

It's useless to try to regulate the behaviour of the ignorant in this situation. Pax are reluctant to move items off chairs because someone might yell at them. Crew will not 'enforce' any rules, they cultivate 'happiness' for all pax. They are compensated with gratuities; don't expect them to engage in any unpleasant interactions with pax. Cruiselines can indeed set up an easy timer system (some of us North Americans might be able to figure it out, or we could ask our much-more sophisticated Euro brethren). 'Security' can be summoned to remove items after 30 minutes. Security does not exist on tips, they are salaried. When the affected pax returns and starts yelling, security can come mediate.

I don't click on unknown links, but I've been using the same type of u-shaped inflatable neck pillow forever on airplanes. I even dozed with it yesterday coming back from Fontainbleau to Paris. Wonderful for a quick, refreshing snooze. You turn it sideways so it supports your chin and just nod off. You can get them anywhere. And it doesn't screw up your hair!

Princess' medallion allows you to order anything delivered anywhere, so we had no trouble ordering drinks delivered to the room. I was really surprised, but they're probably figured this out by now. OTOH, it's Princess, so who knows?

I've never missed being outside for sailaway on any cruise, any port. We dine in the MDR occasionally and always 'dress up'. Rest of the time, it's the buffet; we both love to eat exactly what and how much we wish. I never wear shoes on a cruise except when required.

Seems to me that (as usual) dealing directly with the dining staff will get you whatever your little heart desires. The crew wants us to be happy ... the medallion app doesn't care if we're happy. .

OMG! Too clever ... I would have never thought it.

Just look up the companies he lists ... that kind of cruise. I think there's a huge choice out there. I wouldn't ignore the Grand Circle/Saga kinds of cruises ... they do appeal to people from 40 on up and their itineraries can be wonderful. There are a lot of 'cruisers' who love to hike and kayak and adventure stuff like that. Our 'Jewels of UK' Grand Circle cruise several years was really wonderful for all the small towns we visited. Careful reading and use of these boards would give you a great deal of insight.

On a Rhine cruise (or probably anywhere in Europe) the restrictions are elastic. I take whatever bag I want, but I'm always careful of the weight ... more for myself than the airline. The issue with luggage on a cruise is always where to stow it when empty ... that can be a major factor in a small cabin. But your room steward can probably help stow it somewhere if it doesn't fit under the bed ... or you can make a nightstand out of it beside the bed if needed.

The friend could board the ship, attend the muster, give your mom her key and go home. She could get suddenly ill. I wonder what would happen?

WOW! There might be hope for this dreadful medallion idea yet.

The abbreviations can sometimes be annoying. I generally read a few posts and figure it out. MDR is main dining room, DMW is 'dine my way'. Unfortunately, you need to use the app for most things and it doesn't work much of the time. Out of four dinner reservations we made, only one 'worked', the others got screwed up. A crew member came by when we were poking at the big display in the elevator bank one day. He checked the res we were interested in; it was wrong and he attempted to correct it, but he couldn't get the medallion to work either. It's really annoying. Princess is well aware of this issue which has gone on for several years, they just don't care.

Much better booking air yourself if you're an experienced traveller. The 'free transfer' means very little. The issue is that booking one-way tix can sometimes be a difficult mess. International O/W fares can be all over the place, I've often seen them double the price of a R/T. So I'd advise that you start looking and keep track of what you find. When the price gets to a point you think is fair, pounce on it. It's worth a call to the TA (unless it's just an online booking service) who booked your cruise, just to see what they might offer you for air. If you cruise often, they might extend themselves a little to attract your future biz.